Freestyle Fellowship emerged on the L.A. rap scene during the early '90s. Given the chance to hone its skills at a health-food store's open-mic nights, the group quickly earned the attention and respect of the city's hip-hop underground. Their second album, 1993's Inner City Griots, is the only completely collaborative album released during the group's career. Surprisingly, each MC (Mikah Nine, Jupiter, Peace, and Aceyalone) seems fully matured at this early stage. On Inner City Griots, the production is improved to match ...
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Freestyle Fellowship emerged on the L.A. rap scene during the early '90s. Given the chance to hone its skills at a health-food store's open-mic nights, the group quickly earned the attention and respect of the city's hip-hop underground. Their second album, 1993's Inner City Griots, is the only completely collaborative album released during the group's career. Surprisingly, each MC (Mikah Nine, Jupiter, Peace, and Aceyalone) seems fully matured at this early stage. On Inner City Griots, the production is improved to match the group's vibrant, dexterous wordplay. Swapping rhymes with agility and grace, the Fellowship is a rap tag team par excellence. At times, the lyrics are so dense and the delivery so quick that the words are practically indecipherable. Yet the rappers are just as adept at slowing down the pace without losing a bit of their lyrical energy or creativity.Unrestricted by tired rap themes, the Fellowship strikes at a range of subjects. The abrasive opening one-two of "Blood" and "Bullies of the Block" might throw listeners off guard but as "Everything's Everything" opens, they provide assurances that "It's all right y'all." The guns are dropped and microphones prevail. Inner City Griots (a griot is an African storyteller) takes on Aceyalone's twisted nursery rhyme "Cornbread," the positive vibes of "Inner City Boundaries," the locker-room machismo of "Shammy's" (an inevitable ode to the ladies), and "Way Cool," a tale of serial killing horror. On "Park Bench People," the Freestyle Fellowship even asks whether rap music is big enough to take in a sung rumination on homelessness. With live instrumentation provided by the Underground Railroad (whose members appear throughout the album), the song stretches into a section reminiscent of '70s Stevie Wonder. Like all great groups that preceded it, the Fellowship was simply testing the limits of hip-hop and its own capabilities on this multifaceted collection. ~ Nathan Bush, Rovi
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Fair. All our items come in the original case with artwork, though manuals and slipcovers are not always guaranteed to be included as these items are donated goods and will show some wear and tear from normal use. Jewel cases will be included but may be damaged and/or cracked. We typically resurface discs that are visibly scratched prior to shipping, but we do not test disc(s). Digital codes may not be included and have not been tested to be redeemable and/or active. Thank you for shopping with Goodwill Colorado! Orders shipped Monday through Friday. Safe and Secure Bubble Mailer! Your purchase helps put people to work and learn life skills to reach their full potential. Thank you!
